Hyuroi Collection
by BleedingCoffee
Summary: A collection of one shots celebrating the relationship between Roy Mustang and Maes Hughes, both platonic and romantic.
1. Brotherhood

AN: For HyuroiWeek2016, Day 1, "Brotherhood"

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 _Hyuroi Collection_

Chapter 1

 **Brotherhood**

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Of all the ways Roy thought about seeing Hughes again, he never thought it would be like this. He never thought seeing his face again will fail to light a fire of warmth and excitement in him, but if this war had taught him anything it was that he was wrong. _Wrong about everything_ and there wasn't any reason why this would be different.

Despite the smile, Hughes was devoid of that light too. An internal fire, a passion they once held for everything but now tried to keep hidden. The light of humanity, that light of memories and love. It was something they all learned to keep barely burning, to let it die down to just a smolder so it didn't consume all their reserves. It was easier to hide it away then let it burn itself out.

To see Hughes again and not feel anything but sorrow made him feel more lost than ever. In all the death and flames, the one thing he could say was that maybe...maybe he was saving others a trip to this hell. The better he did his job, the faster this war ended and spared someone this horrible experience. Some days it was the only hope he clung to.

However as he walked with his friend he noticed that light begin to burn brighter as he talked. And as he stoked the internal flames and got more excited to catch up with him he couldn't help but bask in that warmth and smile a little. Perhaps this was the hope he needed, a friend from the past. No, they were so much more than that.

"And look!" Hughes turned and shoved the letter he had received in his friend's face. He rummaged in the envelope for the photo. "Look! I met a great girl! She's waiting for me Roy! When this is all over, I can go home to her."

And quickly that fire flared up inside him, but not with excitement and love but with jealousy. The flames were not red, but green and toxic. Roy couldn't even believe how quickly the words flew out of his mouth and he hated himself for it. "Careful Hughes, you know that guy in the movies who always talks about the girl back home is always the one who dies."

It hurt them both and Roy felt the sting of that burn before Hughes could even react. Years, they hadn't talked in _years_ , but somehow everything that had been left unresolved just festered and he didn't even realize it until now. The look on Maes's face, he knew. Of course _he knew_. They had been so close, sharing the years at the academy like brothers...then much more.

He couldn't even apologize, he had no idea what to say but Hughes swung his arm over his shoulder anyway. Hugged him, pulled him close because he understood. Understood that there had been a void in their lives when they went their separate ways after graduation, that communication was easy at first but trickled down to a mere birthday card once a year. He understood that in some cruel twist of fate they were reunited in this hell and it was too damned late to figure out what they used to be and how they could go back to that simpler time and innocence.

That squeeze, rekindled the warmth. It invited him back into his life, as these soldiers would invite him to sit next to the campfire instead of brooding alone in the dark. It was a tight hug and a squeeze that lasted too long that told him they weren't going to drift apart again. And he leaned into it, because he had stood by himself too long and it felt good to lean on someone again.

It was what the army was supposed to be, a brotherhood. You protected those beside you, you trusted your backs to them. It was how it was supposed to be, but he wasn't one of them. He was an alchemist. He scared everyone with what he was capable of, he scared himself. So maybe he wasn't aware of how close he was to just losing himself out here until Hughes showed up. To cling to him in the storm, to keep the fire burning in the lighthouse and show him where home was. And he'd fight to keep him alive, fight so he could go home to that life he wanted to create. "You said you had a photo?"

"Yeah." Hughes let him go and pulled the worn photo out, the beacon of light that was going to get him through all this. "I'm going to need a best man. My kids are going to need a cool Uncle who lights birthday candles with a snap of his fingers."

It was an invitation to come back into his life, to follow that hope and light out of here. It was what he needed. "She's a lucky woman."

"Gracia." Hughes said softly. "She's amazing."

"I can't wait to meet her." Roy said and saw that fire in Hughes's face, the hope he needed to carry on too. A excitement that he was coming along with him this time. It was infectious.


	2. Photograph

For HyuroiWeek 2016 Day 2: "Photograph"

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 _Hyuroi Collection_

Chapter 2

 **Photograph**

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"Uncle Roy, let's look at pictures."

Roy was just about to make an excuse up to leave; something about visiting his mother or maybe bullshit a work related responsibility. He felt obligated to check in with the Hughes's and make sure Gracia was doing alright, but it was a mere courtesy call. He dropped off a present or two for Elicia, birthday presents that were too expensive, and avoid looking at all the pictures.

And now she was running to her room to get more of them.

Fucking pictures everywhere. That was the Hughes legacy. It's like they just wanted to remain frozen in the moment, believing 'Daddy was at work' and it suffocated him. It was a gallery of the happiness that was all too brief and a family who could never move on. They'd live in his shadow forever and Maes cast a huge shadow on them all.

So he sat there awkwardly, took another sip of water and waited for Elicia to grab the pictures she wanted to share with him. Gracia picked up the plate off the coffee table that had held the slice of apple pie she served up to him.

"I remember when...he asked me to make you a pie that first time."

He tensed. He wasn't here for a round of memories. However he felt her hand on his, and he knew this wasn't for his benefit.

"I didn't know then that I had to share him with you."

Roy had looked death in the eye many times and didn't blink, but he couldn't look at his best friend's widow right now. It was something that was supposed to remain unspoken, something he liked to pretend that Gracia never saw. Maes was never unloyal to her, but his time was spent divided between the two of them. They worked together, that was acceptable, but all the phone calls and nights out at the bar...the weekends away working overtime...that was all time he had robbed from her. Precious now that they knew how little of it they had with him. "I..."

"I ignored it, I think. For the longest time." She took a deep breath. "Then I used it to cope after he died, because I blamed you for taking him from me. I knew it wasn't your fault, I knew you blamed yourself and it made it easier. I was wrong and I know he would have wanted us to grieve together...but I'm not strong like him. I didn't want to share him. I didn't want to share losing him."

Roy finally found the willpower to look into her eyes. "I should go."

"No." She gripped him harder. "What I meant to say is that my husband was an amazing man. He wanted to share this family with you because he wanted to show you the joy you were denying yourself. He loved you and you were part of his family and his life and I loved him more for it. He's gone and that's not your fault. He's gone and in his absence, I need you to be here to keep his memory alive. For him, for Elicia. We need to share his memories, _for her_. So please, let me get you another slice of pie?"

Her voice was cracking and her nails dug into his skin. She was right, the one thing Maes would want was to walk on beside his daughter even if it was just in stories and pictures. The day she forgot him, was the day he truly died. Gracia tried to hide her tears, but as Elicia came into the room he knew she was just going to disappear into the kitchen for that promised pie and leave the little girl to him. He owed her a little reprieve. This was only a small part of his life, this was her entire life. "Pie sounds wonderful."

And the truth was that Maes Hughes was a man who had enough love for everyone in his life. He really did accomplish what he said he would do, put his past behind him and love his family with everything he had. So, as he had shared the love of the man they lost, he also had to share in the burden of the loss with the woman Maes loved. He had vowed to protect them, to make a better world for Elicia to grow into, but this was immeasurably more painful. However, it was fair. It was equivalent exchange for taking him from this family so he would endure the pain and do what he could to bring him back to life in stories for Elicia.

And Elicia set the most painful chapter down in his lap: The Academy days. The days when they were young and naive, love held no consequences and the future was promising.

"Tell me about the pictures." She said and snuggled up close to him, the uniform made her remember how Daddy felt when he would go to work.

He flipped open the album to the first page. A photograph of graduation day. How many times he had looked at that picture on his desk at home, on Maes's mantle...stabbed to the office wall with Hughes's dagger...and he never realized how damned gay they looked. It looked like it could have been a damned wedding photo. Roy finally took a deep breath and laughed. Hughes had remarked 'I knew you'd grow up to be hot' last time he looked at this picture in the office. God, he missed him. "Well kiddo, this was our graduation from the academy. We weren't always friends, in fact we started out as enemies."

Elicia flipped to a larger picture, a group picture. "What's this one?"

"How did he get all these?" Roy asked. These weren't just pictures they took, the whole first page was class photos and the next was admission evaluations..."Did he steal these from the records department?"

Gracia returned with the pie. She shrugged and smiled. "He made copies."

Roy relaxed a little. "I had no idea he did this."

"Something to keep the future Fuhrer humble..." Elicia repeated the words that her Dad used to say as he giggled and put things in the album.

Roy felt a blush tingle his cheeks. Dear God there was so much they did in the academy, what kind of blackmail was in this? He carefully flipped through the pages and his fear abated as he realized it was a showcase of how Maes had bested him at everything. Physicals, fitness reports, grades. Even the reports they had to file when they got into that fight with Heathcliff. It was organized by year, and Roy noted the records started to even out and the pictures of them became more prolific. When competition ebbed and friendship began.

"Start at the beginning." Elicia pushed the pages back down and went back to the first page. "What was he saying in this picture?"

Hughes was grinning and lifting his hat while he stood there like a professional soldier. He huffed. The truth would come out eventually. "Damn Roy. Four years. Four years and you still look like a baby... try to grow a mustache or something so they don't mistake you for a cadet and send you through the academy again."

Tonight he'd find comfort in a bottle of bourbon and she'd cry into her husband's pillow to muffle the sound, but for now they laughed.


	3. Protect the People I Love

AN: For Hyuroi Week 2016: Day 3: "Protect the People I Love"

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 _Hyuroi Collection_

Chapter 3

 **Protect the People I love**

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"Still working?" Maes looked at the clock on the wall to verify that it was well past quitting time. Then he shut the door to Roy's office and went over to sit on his desk. Roy looked up at him, tired and tense.

"It never ends." Roy signed off on another document, then put his pen down to massage his hand before moving to rub his temple. "Sorry, I know you want to go get something to eat..."

"Don't worry Roy. I know you. I knew I would have to drag you away from your desk." Maes smiled and looked at his worn down friend and wondered how many nights he was spending here at work trying to get caught up or cover up something. It was time for the quarterly budget to be submitted and Ed did a lot of damage that needed to be hidden somewhere in the numbers.

"This isn't something I can just ignore." Roy rubbed his eyes. "You weren't kidding when you said kids were expensive."

Maes got off the desk and walked over to Roy's chair. He was used to this Roy from the academy, that baby faced shit who gave himself ulcers over studying and stayed up all night to ensure he aced the test. Still the same Roy, he just hid it better. He tussled his friends hair and then put his hands on his shoulders and sighed. "Your shoulders are like stone."

"You should see my abs." Roy replied dully, his attempt at humor just landing flat as it left his tongue. He leaned his head back to look up at Hughes with a smile. It was good to see him.

Hughes bent down and kissed him, unable to resist the temptation. "I was hoping I could, but you won't leave work."

"Let's just burn the place down." Roy mumbled. "Fuck it. Let Grumman figure out how to cover up my destruction for the greater good."

"Doubt he's going to work so hard to cover it up, probably just will sign one paper to have you arrested. Though you should get yourself a wife first so you can have conjugal visits." Maes brushed Roy's unkempt hair from his face with a sweep of his finger. "Unless you want to find one in there. Wonder what Kimblee looks like in white."

"God." Roy snorted and sat back up and enjoyed the feel of Maes's hands running through his hair and down his neck to his shoulders where one gentle squeeze sent pain coursing through his back. "Easy!"

"I barely touched you." Maes replied and decided this massage would need him to be rid of his own uniform jacket before continuing. "Lean forward and just relax."

Roy smiled. "Not exactly the context you were hoping to use that phrase in tonight, huh?"

"I still have pretty high hopes for getting you out of here before dawn. For now, you need to get those knots out of your back before you get a migraine."

"Too late." Roy mumbled and crossed his arms on the desk and rested his chin on them.

Maes started to gently rub his shoulders and could feel Roy react to the pain under his fingertips. "You can't protect him like this Roy, Ed's going to have to understand the cost of his action eventually."

"He's too young to understand the monetary value of his 'help'." Roy mumbled. Maes's fingers rolled over his tense shoulder muscles with practiced precision. "He needs this, needs to help people, and the people need his help. It's what the military should be doing but instead I have to hire a kid to go out there and do it for us. So...the military can figure out a way to pay for it. I just file it under natural disaster."

Another twitch as he hit a spot that needed some attention, he placed his palm over it and leaned into the muscle. "I thought for sure you'd have someone working late with you."

Roy grunted in pain as that spot sent waves of screams from his muscles up every nerve from his hip to his neck. "Not their problem. They work hard enough."

"You're working too hard. It's a team, they work with you. They'd help you if you told them." Maes moved on to the other side and got an equally bad reaction when he touched the muscles.

"Hey guys, help me cover up the massive amounts of destruction our teenage prodigy leaves in his wake. You know, that kid who outranks you? Yeah, lets use tax money, that money that comes out of your much smaller paycheck, to repair the damages he creates while doing the work we can't do...cause we're busy asserting our power as a military force instead of using it to help the country we serve. Yeah, that will help morale." Roy sighed. His back was feeling better already. Maybe it was just unloading all this on someone of similar rank that was doing most of that. "I have a lot of people to protect, and they don't need to know what kind of things I'm doing to balance the books. Plausible deniability."

"I also want to protect the people I love, Roy. And I have to protect you from yourself. You have too much on your shoulders, you need to stop working yourself to death." Maes repositioned himself to rub harder, finally just leaning on Roy to get at the problem area.

"I'll take that into consideration." Roy smiled.

"How about you consider getting out of here so I can do a proper job of this?" Maes ran his thumb up and down the muscles beside Roy's spine and wasn't surprised to find tension there too.

"Subtle." Roy couldn't help but smile. This felt nice. Maes's hands, his body leaning on his, the talk to force him to unwind.

"You want subtle?" Maes grinned and stood up. He back up and waited for Roy's head to turn to him, curiosity getting the better of the man. Then he winked and dropped his pants. "Like my new boxers? I bought them because they remind me of you!"

"They're cartoon unicorns." Roy said and wondered if he was really just showcasing what was in those boxers or the ridiculous design.

"They're horny mustangs!" Maes grinned.

"Wow." Roy said and then had to start laughing. Then the laughter wouldn't stop and he was burying his head in his arms to try to hide tears and get himself under control. Hughes could always do this to him, turning him from the mess he found him in into a human being again. "You idiot."

Maes pulled his pants up, rebuckled and then grabbed his jacket. He pet Roy's head again, the man was like a damned cat! He pretended he didn't want attention then turned into an adorable lovable shit when you stroked and petted him. Now it was time to make sure he ate and had a nice soft place to sleep. "Come on majestic creature, your carriage awaits."

Roy swatted him away and laughed harder then felt his uniform land on his head. When he sat up again, wiping his eyes and removing his jacket from his head he felt better. His back was freer, his migraine wasn't pulsating in his head and he knew he was no longer focused enough to continue working on these reports. He stood up as Hughes opened the door and flicked off lights. He slipped into his jacket and walked over to him, an arm quickly looped around his shoulders and pulled him into an embrace. "Thank you."


	4. Dreams

AN: For Hyuroi Week 2016, Day 4, "Dreams". My dream that Hughes lives to see Roy Fuhrer.

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 _Hyuroi Collection_

Chapter 4

 **Dreams**

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"Nice office." Hughes whistled as he walked into the room and then walked over to Roy as he stood at the window looking down at the courtyard.

"The previous occupant left some...things in the desk for me to find." Roy mumbled and Hughes chuckled.

Maes's eyes darted over to the desk, there was no telling what Grumman left in there.

"My Mom's number is on the contacts list, he crossed out 'phone sex' and wrote Mom over it. " Roy closed his eyes. "This is not how I dreamed this moment would be."

"You did it Roy. You got to the top. You're Fuhrer Mustang, leader of Amestris." Maes pulled his best friend into a hug and kissed his temple. "You can have phone sex with anyone you want."

"God." Roy elbowed him in the side and was pulled into a tighter hug.

"You've reached the top, it's time to let yourself live instead of living to achieve this goal."

"It's still not over though." Roy said and looked down at the people mulling about in the courtyard where the ceremony had just taken place. "So much work to do and it's going to be a battle."

Maes turned Roy around, looked at his best friend with his new uniform and his hair slicked back. "I'm damned proud of you."

"Thanks."

"But you seriously need to get married." Hughes watched the eyes roll. "Roy, you're now the head of the military controlling this nation. You're, unarguably, the most powerful alchemist in the world. You need to convey that you're more than just a military man if you want to prove you're invested in this notion of democracy, if you really believe that the people deserve this power. Bradley knew about good PR, he had a family and the people still regard him as that sweet man who doted on his wife. Grumman was a ridiculous grandpa. You...you're this powerful beautiful bastard and it's weird you're single."

Roy tried to shrug it off but Hughes grabbed his chin and made him look at him.

"You can be happy, I know you don't think you deserve it but...they deserve it. Your future family, they deserve a husband and father like you. And this country deserves a leader who is even more invested in making it better because his own kids should have a better world to live in." Hughes released his chin. "So go out there and make me proud. Go get yourself a wife!"

"You're impossible to please." Roy mumbled.

"Please, we both know I'm easily pleased." Hughes replied and then pulled his best friend into a real hug, one with enough pressure to squeeze the air out of him. "Well done, Roy. I knew you could do it."


	5. Actions Speak Instead of Words

For HyuroiWeek2016: Day 5: "Actions Speak Instead of Words"

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 _Hyuroi Collection_

Chapter 5

 **Actions Speak Instead of Words**

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" _In general, men prefer to let their actions speak instead of words. When they're in pain, they don't want to burden anyone with it, not if they can help it. They don't want anyone to worry about them. That's how they are. Even so, there may come a time when they'll ask for your help and when they do, I know that you'll be there for them. Isn't that enough?"_

Maes had spoken those words to Winry and he didn't realize until later that night, as he repeated it over and over in his mind, that he had really been talking about Roy.

He looked over at the clock and finally gave in to the fact that he wasn't going to sleep tonight. He sat up and swung his legs off the bed, into his plush ducky slippers, and stood up to get something to eat. He grabbed his glasses off the nightstand in case he needed to read for a while and quietly slipped out of the bedroom leaving Gracia to her much needed rest.

He rubbed his eyes and wondered why those words had so easily rolled off his tongue, why he felt the need to confess his frustrations about Roy to a teenage girl under the guise of advice about men. Sure Ed and Roy had their similarities, but that statement said more about the speaker than anything. It spoke volumes about how much he missed Roy and how the distance between them didn't deafen the reality of Roy's self-loathing, self-destruction and selfish need to keep it all contained.

It was evident every time he saw him, the evidence of sleepless nights and forgotten meals. His apartment was a picture of everything his was hiding away from the world, the Roy Mustang nobody was allowed to see; Empty bottles on his desk, scribbled notes in piles on the floor, books that were earmarked and forgotten about, pill bottles on the counter and an uncomfortable couch with a pillow for a man who didn't want to fall into a deep sleep. For Roy, it was a struggle to keep demons at bay. He removed himself from those he loved, he kept his distance, because that mood was infectious and he would rather be destroyed than to harm someone else. He was just that kind of man, a man who thought about everyone else first.

Maes flipped on the light in the living room and went over to the couch. It was 2:30 am, but he knew Roy would be home and awake. So he sat down and pulled the phone over and called.

" _Hello_?"

He sounded groggy, lost. So Maes leaned back and made sure to sound as chipper as possible. " Hey Roy, sorry to wake you. Just...had to hear your voice. Felt like talking like we used to, but you're not in the bunk below me anymore."

There was a pause, then he spoke a little less tired and a little more lively. He could almost hear him smile, that soft bashful smile when he realized he was loved. _"You say that like you actually spent time in your own bunk."_

Maes smiled and pulled his legs up onto the couch to get more comfortable. "When are you going to get promoted and move to Central? What's taking so long?"

There was a snort, which was good. He was amused. Amused meant the fog was lifting. " _Too young. That's all I keep hearing."_

"Well you hired a damned kid to make you look older but you just keep acting more childish than him, so what did you expect them to say?" Maes countered.

" _Look how spry Colonel Mustang is, he's making the other officers look bad. Quick, give him a desk job in Central."_

"You want them to treat you like veal? Where is that tactic in the _Art of War,_ or is that an exclusive in _Mustang's Manual of Warfare_?" Maes asked and grinned. "Lock you up in a tiny office and just come by occasionally to look at your adorable little face and say shit like, 'mmm...looks so tender and tasty'."

" _I.."_

And there it was, the laughter. "Admit it, you just imagined it in Fuhrer Bradley's voice."

" _Fuck you Maes, that's just wrong."_

Maes smiled to himself. Yeah, Roy would never ask for this kind of help but he need it the most. Hell they both need it. Maes needed to hear that sound of innocent laughter as much as Roy needed to feel the rush of living again. So maybe what he said earlier was true because with each phone call and embarrassing spectacle of a hug, he showed Roy that he still loved him because saying the words were too painful to hear or say. Speaking them would be too quickly followed with excuses and apologies, but actions proved that bond was as strong as ever and he still loved this man very much.


	6. Battlefield

The Homunculus!Hughes fic nobody wants. Inspired by some lovely pieces of art.

This is just going to be small serving size portion for now until I can really sit down and work on this. Premise is Hughes survives the phone booth attack, but comes back with a new friend. Worst case scenario, character death x2. Best case...Gluttony gets adopted.

For Hyuroi Week 2016 Day 6: Battlefield

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 _Hyuroi Collection_

Chapter 6

 **Battlefield**

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Roy paused at the entrance to the hospital basement and looked in to the dark abyss below trying to steel his nerves and prepare himself for what lie ahead. He absentmindedly went through the motions of tugging on his gloves and with it came the focus on the alchemy that was required to unleash their power. He had marched onto the battlefield countless times before after this ritual, but this was different. This was Hughes.

He could feel his heart rate pick up again as soon as he considered his opponent; Hughes in body but not in soul. He had to keep reminding himself that this was the enemy masquerading as his friend, he needed that to conjure up the appropriate outrage of that in order to propel himself forward and into the darkness. He had to prepare to burn his friend's body until nothing remained. The thought alone made bile start rising into his throat.

It was why he had quietly dressed and left his hospital room, why he couldn't ask for backup on this. He couldn't ask Hawkeye to watch as flames destroyed someone else caught up in this hellish game, her eyes never needed to see him use this alchemy on a friend no matter the circumstances. He couldn't ask Ed or Al to watch another person they cared for be twisted into an alchemy abomination that had to be erased. He and he alone was going to have to find his best friend and put him down, just like a dog.

He descended the stairs and with each step kept telling himself that this being he would be looking at was _not_ Maes Hughes. He had seen it early on in his recovery, hints that something wasn't right. He wrote it off as trauma, but the truth was he would have accepted anything as long as his friend was still alive. However deep down he knew something was off, and now it was undeniable.

"What gave me away?"

Roy's heart stopped. He should have known that Hughes wouldn't hide in the depths of the basement, his specialty was in surprise attacks, close quarters combat. He knew the range of effectiveness of Roy's alchemy. He knew that there was safety from powerful attacks closer to the alchemist himself. However he kept telling himself that this _wasn't_ Maes, so how...did he have that knowledge? He looked to his left and saw Hughes smiling at him in a small sliver of illumination, leaning against the wall beside the stairwell, glasses catching the reflection from the light from the hall above. "The smile."

The light switch was flipped to on and the hum of ballast with the fixtures above them accompanied the flickering of lights. "I told you I looked forward to the day those eyes of yours are wide with agony."

Roy watched that same wicked smile appear on Hughes's lips again, now he knew his opponent. He knew now what he was up against and didn't hesitate to raise his hand and prepare to snap. He could easily pinpoint target the flames to inflict pain and push the bitch further into the room. There was plenty down here to use, like the incinerator. "I'll burn you straight back to hell..."

"Tsk Tsk." Lust said and put his hands in his pockets and shoved himself off the wall. Hughes's body was a lot more awkward than the previous one, but the irony was that _this body_ could get more of a rise out of Mustang. "This time I'm not entirely a homunculus, but one sharing a human host. So the question is has your friend been entirely consumed or is there a chance to still save him?"

Roy paused. That wasn't possible. "The definition of homunculus is an artificially created human. What you're suggesting is possession, which implies you are more than just an alchemy experiment gone wrong. I'm calling your bluff."

"You know nothing of my kind or how we're made. He is in here along with _all_ his memories." Lust let that wicked grin spread. Truth had a surprising satisfying taste and she could see Mustang contemplating it. It was the only answer to how an impostor could go unnoticed for this long, and how it was so easy to gain the tactical advantage in this basement. "And such delicious memories of _you_. It wasn't hard to find compatibility in this vessel, especially when he still lusts for you despite having a happily family and a adoring wife. _Perfect_ example of my sin. A surprisingly compatible host. "

Roy watched the grin fade and one he was more accustomed to cross his lips.

"Yeah Roy, I still think about you and the _feel_ of you. The way you used to moan, the sounds our bodies would make when they slapped together...I never knew sex like that again." Lust licked his lips. Sharing memories and body meant also sharing attraction. The need to push Mustang against the wall and take another look at his incredible body was growing. The first time they met she took pleasure in leaving him writhing in agony, now she wanted to see him writhing in pleasure. It was like a thunderstorm brewing inside of her, her cold heart meeting the powerful warmth of Hughes's. It wouldn't hurt to indulge a little in the fantasy, just to gain the upper hand with Mustang. "I mean that first time...well we had some residual competitiveness that probably shouldn't have been in bed with us...but we were young. Those first times never do go well."

Roy remained steadfast, it was a cheap ploy. "Sounds like you've been reading some of those popular romance novels."

"Oh Roy, the memories are arousing as hell and I would love to find out for myself why you can do to this body. I'm burning up thinking about it. " Lust cooed. "Flames of passion this time, Roy, not your alchemy. "

Roy raised his hand as the homunculus got closer and pulled Hughes's signature move of pushing his glasses up the bridge of his nose.

"Do it. Killing him will destroy you, and with it all your plans to undermine Bradley. Everything you work for will be lost, and you along with it." Lust let a smile touch Hughes's lips. No this man was fueled by anger, it was best to cool down his fire with pain from his past. They wanted a human sacrifice and Father was not pleased with how willingly she tried to dispose of two of them. "Who will be there to console you as you cry over me like you cried over all those people you burned? Do you remember when you stood there frozen when Heathcliff pointed his gun at you? Do you remember how quick I was to kill him for you? I mean he brought us together in the academy, it was almost poetic how his death brought us back together in Ishval."

Roy held his breath. He never told anyone about that. The only one who knew was Hughes and Erbe. Suddenly he was pinned against the wall, Hughes's body pressed up against him, warm breath blowing against his face. Hughes had always been able to get the upper hand in a fight.

"Your watch took the bullet, I remember thinking you were dead. You were unresponsive as I looked for a wound and I fucking cried on your chest when I saw it was in your damned watch. You touched my face with those gloves, course as hell and rubbing against the sand on my face and stubble... it was like you were trying to rip my skin off. It meant you were alive and I fucking cried while that bastard bled out behind us."

Roy finally exhaled and knew that this wasn't a cold read or an attempt to unnerve him. Hughes had whined about the gloves that night.

" _I know you like it rough Roy, but leave those gloves off_." Lust whispered, reciting word from word a treasured memory. The memories of these two together was almost overwhelming the desire for bloodlust and giving into sexual lust. Only the knowledge that being in this body would make revenge on Mustang that much sweeter was what helped maintain the balance. But damn, being so close to him was making it difficult.

Nobody could know about that but them. Roy could feel his resolve breaking. "Memories prove _nothing._ They are just that, memories, even dead men live on because of them."

"Fine, tell him yourself Hughes. You've been trying to gain control to tell him..." Lust let the man screaming inside take control for a moment, it was the only way. "Roy, for God's sake just kill me. Don't let this thing close to my family. The things...it wants to do to them...don't give it the chance. Kill me."

There wasn't any question about who was talking, not from the look in his eyes of the pain on his face. Suddenly he was overcome with it all and felt his body shake and tears begin to roll down his cheeks. It was not often he admitted defeat and this was in his weakest place, his heart. "I...can't."

"My knife, just pull my knife and slit my throat. Shut her up, do what you know you need to do. Kill me, it's what you came down here for! Finish her."

Roy opened his mouth to say he couldn't, but the face changed and he knew Lust had returned. Roy screamed as a hand ran up his abs and then touched the burn on his side. He instinctively went to shove away the cause for the pain and his hand was grabbed. Then his hand was forced above his head and the flash of light hitting something metallic before a piercing pain in his hand. Hughes's dagger pinned it to the wall, through the glove and flesh of his palm.

"Just in case you're thinking about doing something about that." Lust pressed his head into Roy's, pushing him back into the wall and looking into those eyes watered with pain and anguish. "Not so focused now are you? Your friend is. These eyes, the eyes of a killer, haven't flinched when they had to save you from that Ishvalian classmate. I was pleasantly surprised that he has taken life without the guilt that clearly plagues you. Didn't hesitate to cut me either. I have a body that has incredible reflexes, a host who is quick to use them and a conscience that is unhampered by his actions. He's not in control, I am. And with these memories I know every little detail about you, especially your weaknesses. So with him, I control you as well."

Roy held up the other hand and put his fingers together to snap. There was nothing but a smug look on Hughes's face, he knew he couldn't kill his friend. Maes Hughes knew damned well that he would give his own life for him, so now the homunculus knew that too. Hell, Maes knew him better than he knew himself so an attack was pointless. Lust could counter every move.

The battle was over, this time Lust emerged the victor. However there was revenge to be had and that came with toying with the spoils. The dagger was pulled from the splayed out hand and Mustang let out a cry, not from as much pain but from defeat. To ensure there weren't any brave moves as he left, he slashed the other glove like she did last time they fought but before the glove could fall off, Hughes took control again. More powerful than before, like a man clinging to his last chance to save those he loved.

Roy watched through blurry vision as the dagger chipped away at scabs that had formed on his hand, retracing the array that had been cut into the flesh before. The cuts were quick and precise, Hughes would have known his array even if it wasn't already cut into his hand. Tears streaked down Hughes's cheeks and he knew that he would never cause him pain, never cut him like this unless it was a last resort. "Hughes, no."

"I'm only alive because they put this thing in me, they saved my life by making me into this monster. You know this isn't how I want to live, putting everyone I love in danger. Kill me. I have control right now it can't fight back."

There was still ignition cloth on his fingers, despite the array being sliced and the gloves torn. He had everything he needed to fight, except the strength to follow though with it. "Maes...I can't."

And Lust finally surged back into power again and released Mustang, watching him collapse in a heap in the floor. Blood poured from his hands and tears from his eyes and Lust couldn't help but bend down and lift his chin so they could truly recreate their last encounter. She slid the glasses down Hughes's nose so he could look directly into the eyes of the man he loved. "Humans, such sad, weak and foolish creatures. You disappoint me Mustang, I thought you were an admirable foe but you are like all the rest. "

Roy watched Hughes push his glasses back into place and felt his finger slowly pull away from his chin. Then he shut his eyes and listened to the sound of his boots going up the stairs, the echo of the footfalls like nails in a coffin. He'd try to get him back but if his efforts failed than the Flame Alchemist would leave this world with him in a proper funeral pyre.


	7. End

AN: Written for FMA Rarepiar Week 2016 on Tumblr, Day 7

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 _Hyuroi Collection_

Chapter 7

 **End**

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The war was over and he should have felt relieved. He should have felt the joy and the flush of victory. He shouldn't have felt lost and numb. However as Roy Mustang looked up at the Fuhrer giving his speech and felt the excitement of the soldiers around him, he felt more like a victim than the victor.

This was the end. The end of the conflict. The end of days questioning himself and his humanity as he went to work and carried out his orders. The end of seeing his precious alchemy twisted into a ruthless weapon.

"It's over Roy, it's finally over." Maes Hughes said and interrupted his contemplation.

He looked at him and his heart ached because he realized there was one thing he was avoiding thinking about. That somehow torturing himself over his own actions was easier than admitting the painful truth, that he was still so damned selfish.

This was the end of him and Hughes.

The man had been his salvation, keeping him above the water as this duty threatened to drown him. That helpful hand that had pulled him from the whirlpool of despair, the hands that wrapped dry blankets around his sweat soaked body in the cold desert nights and the hands that made him feel so fucking good he hated himself for indulging in his touch. Hands that would be holding someone else so very soon.

He wanted to rationalize that this renewal of their academy relationship was brought on by the intensity of war. They lived moment for moment, there was little need to hold back and wait for tomorrow when they could die today. It was an adrenaline fueled environment and it allowed for many behaviors to surge past rational thinking. Sex was just a need to release tensions, it was only natural that they would need a distraction. Only natural that their brains would want them to feel the rush of life in order to flush them with the fuel needed for self preservation. It was a powerful drug, and it was often the only thing they had to remind them that they were still human.

That was over, no need for it now. They won, so it was time to go home and enjoy the spoils, to revel in life and family they protected. To enjoy the lucrative rewards of their service to their country and Maes planned to do just that. He would wash off the blood and sand and embrace the woman he loved. Start a family. He'd be satisfied with a end to this chapter of his life and start a new one, a life where he was living the Amestrian dream and Roy was left to play the supporting role; best man, best friend, the best of the best. Best to stay away because he couldn't let go that easily. Best thing for him, if he indeed loved him, was to let him go.

Roy envied him. There was no way he could end anything, this never ending hell would continue until he was finally put out of his misery and lowered into a grave. This war would never end for him, it would haunt him every day and night wherever he went. And that's why Hughes deserved to go home to someone who never knew the horrors they saw. That's why he needed to start a new life and create a new one by having kids, because the one he had lived had been tarnished beyond repair. Hughes wanted his family, Roy to protect his country; Their naive dreams, maybe that was all they had of their past selves anymore. Perhaps they just saw the cost of those dreams and it made them cling to them even harder.

And so ended the war and with it the one thing that kept him alive through it all. And maybe it was for the best.

He looked at the man beside him that had found him in his darkest moments and dragged him back into the light. He really couldn't offer him anything but a night of passion and release here and there when he needed to let the demons he would carry out of their cage. However he could still find a purpose , a desire to change things and protect the one he loved. So when he looked back at the Fuhrer he saw the place he needed to be to put and end to all of this; To end the senseless destruction, to put himself back on a path of purpose that he would need to carry on.

That path ended at the top and that was exactly where he intended to go.


	8. Corny

Nonsense inspired by the CornHub April Fools thing, because Maes Hughes is a man who would make corn puns and by God I thought this was funny at 3 am.

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 _Hyuroi Collection_

Chapter 8

 **Corny**

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Roy Mustang was not an easy man to fluster and was even harder to distract from his studies. This, Maes felt, was a damned shame especially when he was more in the mood to play around than behave. It would take something obnoxious and surprising to break Roy's concentration and he sat on his bed contemplating what the _something_ would be.

He could go with the age old approach of sexual banter, but that wouldn't work on Roy. No, he had seen, heard and possibly done everything in Christmas's Bar and very little could grab his attention. Which was nice when you could get him to act on his knowledge and not so nice when you couldn't pry his eyes from knowledge.

It was a conundrum. He could sit here and mull over it or act and see where it took him. Maes stood up and went over to Roy's chair to lean on it and hover over him. He could see Roy fidget in annoyance and waited for the inevitable.

"Hughes..."

"You should take a break for some a- _maes_ -ing action." It was his forte. Puns. Humor was how he could break him. His best friend, roommate and lover was ready to cover every means of defense possible. However looking at the four cups of partially finished coffee on the desk gave Maes all in information he needed: Roy was tired. Tired Roy was susceptible to bad jokes and horrible karaoke. Tired Roy was also cranky when someone told him to get some rest and stop working, so the only way to lure him from the desk was to make him laugh hard enough he could be dragged from it.

"Heard that before. You and your damned corny puns are getting old." Roy mumbled and went back to reading.

Corny? Well he could do much better than just a simple pun. "Corny is who I am...and I'm in the mood for a good hard shucking."

Roy shook his head. "Corn jokes would probably get you further in an agricultural college. Perhaps you should look into a transfer."

Maes smirked. "Want to peel back my layers and have some hot, steamy Maize?"

Roy's pencil froze on his notepad as he paused to sigh at the weird sexual corn statement. Hughes was never going to find a wife if he persisted in using lines like that. "Hughes, _I'm studying_."

Maes could hear the lift in his voice that indicated he was amused by it. Hahah...he had him now. "Can't take a little time to nibble on a delicious cob, Mustang? Salty, creamy...shaft..."

Roy bit the inside of his lip. What the fuck was going on and why was he on the verge of laughing at this?

"Too busy to help this Maes get plowed?"

Roy finally started laughing and threw his pencil at the wall. "What the hell is wrong with you?"

Maes grinned, victory! " Want to cream my corn? You can call me Kernel Hughes if you want to roleplay..."

Roy finally got up to smack him as he started to laugh. "I swear to god if you mention corn or bring any vegetables into bed with you..."

"Just this Maes." Maes said and Roy was finally a laughing mess. He pushed him back against the desk and claimed his prize with a kiss before Roy started to laugh too hard to do more than wipe away tears. "What? It's proper horse care to give your Mustang a good helping of feed after you work him hard."

Roy had to lean on his shoulder to stifle the laughter as Hughes moved in for the killing blow. A hot breath blew against his ear.

Maes whispered. "Promise I'll give you a good rub down after the ride."

"I fucking hate you." Roy snorted and tried to shove him away but ended up being pulled over to the bunk and shoved onto the bed as he wiped away tears from laughing at the ridiculous come-ons.

"Just take your serving of hot, steamy, hardcore corn..." Maes watched him bubble with laughter and couldn't help but smile. _Beautiful son of a bitch_. He probably should stop making him laugh if he was intending to do more than watch him giggle and cry. "Salty...buttered..."

Roy tied to put his hand over Hughes's mouth to stop him from talking. Instead he whacked his glasses off and got a kiss for his efforts.

"Want to _speculate_ on corn prices?" Hughes said. "I promise it's _on the rise_."

"Fuck." Roy spat and finally managed to just smack Hughes with a pillow. "Stop."

"Not until you peel off my layers and all the silky threads." Maes threw the pillow on the floor just in time to get a view of Roy combusting with laughter. Face red, tears streaming from his face and finally a hand wiped snot from his nose. Dear god he was adorable. "It's recommended you pull it all off with one, swift tug."

"Bastard," Roy sniffled and ran a hand into his hair. He tugged sharply and blinked through watery eyes. Hughes was grinning from ear to ear, thrilled with the outcome of this insanity. "Stop."

"Give me a reason to shut up."

Roy finally regained control of his breathing and wiped his face with a shirt. Maes was waiting as soon as he was done and he pulled the fool down into a kiss. Ridiculous, crazy asshole...but damn him if he didn't love him for it.


	9. What it means to be human

AN: I was working on this for a fma fic contest entry but couldn't get it done in time.

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 _Hyuroi Collection_

Chapter 9

 **What it means to be human**

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Roy continued to stare at the flag of green draped over the coffin without registering what it was. He allowed his focus to blur, and let the emblem of Amestris be all that he saw. Unfortunately he wasn't nearly as successful when he tried to drown out the voices.

"Mommy! Where is Daddy!?"

He could hear Armstrong sniffle and maintained his stare as the visor of his hat kept anyone from seeing his own glistening eyes. Maes Hughes was dead and it still hadn't sunk in yet.

Hughes had been the most vivid person he had ever met, if anyone knew how to live his life it was him. In the beginning he was an asshole, but Roy couldn't help but envy him; that presence, the determination and every moment so full of life. They collided, as was inevitable, but it said something about the man if he could turn a conflict and competition into a friendship so quickly. Roy wasn't even ashamed to admit he modeled parts of this current facade of his after Hughes, he saw so many admirable and noticeable qualities in him. He was the kind of man who took charge of it all: the situation, his comrades and life it self. How the hell could he be gone?

"DADDY!"

Armstrong was losing it. Sniffles erupted into soft sobs and hiccups and he was trying to not break down. They were all rigidly standing at attention to honor a man who could rarely be bothered to sit on a damned chair correctly or wear a shirt that wasn't offensive to the eye and fashion. He would have wanted a party, he would have wanted denial to spare those he loved this ceremony of sorrow. He would have wanted a celebration of life not death.

Hughes was not afraid to go after what he wanted. That was evident the night he crawled into his bunk and boldly told him that he was attracted to him. Roy knew that if he had been offended that Maes would have rolled off him and they would have left it behind them, carrying on as friends. However he was no stranger to sex or desires from his rather liberal upbringing and didn't hesitate to kiss the cadet playfully staring into his eyes. Eyes to go with his personality, vibrant and observant. No detail was lost and it was what made him too good at his job that someone had to shut those eyes forever.

"MOMMY!"

Roy tried in vain to close out the sound of the distressed little girl and the crying Major. He felt a lump forming in his throat and blinked away the water forming in his own eyes. He bit his lip and tried to focus on something else, anything but the words of the minister reading from his little black book of prayers.

So Gracia had him to thank for teaching that fool how to kiss. He was the world's worst kisser, sloppy and slobbery and too damned eager. He wanted to rush everything, kissing...dating...marriage. He wanted everything _now_ and almost passed the moment by if someone wasn't there to make him enjoy it. Roy shut his eyes and could still remember the feel of his scruffy face in his hands as he held him steady and told him to calm the hell down. Too many times and yet never again.

So he learned to live in the moment enjoy the love and friendship of a man who he knew he might not see again after the Academy. When graduation came it would be off to new assignments around Amestris and he had his own path to carve out. Maes wanted that family still and he needed to revisit Master Hawekye to advance his alchemy lessons to something worthy of State Certification. So they knew it would come to an end, but it didn't take away anything. No, Hughes would move on like he always did, living each moment as fully as he could, and the broody alchemist would dwell on the past while he tried to figure out his path in life.

"Daddy is working! He isn't here because he's working!"

Work. Another gift Maes had was the ability to compartmentalize it all. Keep work separate from his home life instead of mucking around in the mire of it all in every moment. They were changed in Ishval, but somehow he found a way to put that behind him too.

Ishval.

The damned war. It wasn't a surprise Maes moved on. No, he wanted the family and he found Gracia. He wanted that dream so he was going to leave everything behind in order to take it for himself. God he envied him for that. How he could just leave it all behind him and feel worthy of a wife and kid. He was happy for him, because he needed to know that protecting his friends and family was still something he could do. Perhaps it was a lie, he had no idea how he protected anyone out there. He wanted him to be happy. However...

"DADDY!"

He lived life to the fullest and it ended too soon. A man taken from his family and the world he enriched for others, now being lowered into the cold ground. There would be no more calls from him squealing about his daughter or the annoying pushes to 'get a wife'. Never again. Just a memories and tears.

He wanted to share the joy of the life he made, that was Hughes. He wanted to share his affection and did it with slathering kisses that you'd expect from an excited Labrador retriever. He made you laugh, he made you never forget he cared. He wanted to share that thrill of a family and fatherhood, he pushed so hard for it. Maes thought that would be his salvation, just like it had been his. He loved with a startling intensity and he never let you forget that.

However as the cloth of green disappeared and Roy had to stop staring and let reality sink in. 'Maes Hughes' was etched into a granite slab and his friends and family were grieving his loss. He was killed for trying to make a better world for them.

"NOOOOOO!"

His daughter would grow up without him. Her memories would fade of the man who loved her so much. She wouldn't remember his smell or voice, or the things he did for her. Gracia would carry on without the piece of her heart she buried with him. And what about him? Would he make the ultimate sacrifice and bring him back? He certainly had enough research to do human transmutation, the question was if he had the courage. Bring him back...but would it really be him? Could he condemn Maes to life like his own? Hallow, tortured and dark? No...he's spare him that.

What he would do was find that individual who took this priceless life and destroy them. He's make them feel the pain everyone here felt as their life slowly melted away, he'd make them suffer. They took someone who was a light in this world and they would come to fear the man who was the darkness who remained. He had no idea how to cope with this loss other than to allow it to fuel a fire of rage and vengeance. Someone needed to pay for this life they took.

He wasn't Maes. He couldn't just leave this behind him and be a good person for those who loved him. He had no idea how to keep any of his ghosts at bay. So as they started to shovel dirt over his grave he took a deep breath and raised his eyes.

"Why are they burying DADDY!?"

It was how they were different. Maes wanted a future and rushed to it, yet he could never see himself in the future in the world he wanted to make. So he dwelled in the past. The past was a motivator and punishment, it was was stoked the fires and propelled him forward. It was why he deserved to be in the ground and a true part of the past instead of Maes, however fate left him standing on this Earth and he would protect those that he loved and avenge the ones he lost.

Maes wouldn't want that, he'd want this to be a lesson in living life while you had it. Always pushing him to the top, because without the help he'd sink to the bottom and wallow in the mire. He was too broken after Ishval to do anything else, washing the blood off the shrapnel of his former self only to cut himself more. He needed to have that light flashed in his eyes too often, but Maes never complained or stopped believing in him.

Today they buried a good man and unearthed a monster. He was glad Hughes wouldn't be here to see what he was truly capable of when he actually wanted to kill.


	10. Promotion

For HyuroiWeek 2017 Day 1: Promotion

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 _Hyuroi Collection_

Chapter 10

 **Promotion**

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Roy was leaning against the bar when he felt a presence beside him. His lips were poised right above the rim of the glass as he stiffened and looked up in the mirror behind the bar to see who was beside him. His tension was instantly gone and he turned to the individual with an expression of surprise as he slammed the shot glass down on the bar and laid eyes on his best friend. "Hughes!"

"What? You thought I wouldn't want to celebrate your promotion?" Maes asked and leaned over to trace the new star on Roy's epaulet with his finger. He hopped on a train after work to make sure Roy didn't spend his after-promotion party by himself. His staff would have taken him out, but afterwards...well he knew the shit would be in his favorite bar by himself reflecting on it. "So shiny and new! Did Grumman make you bend over so he could pin it on you?"

Roy smile didn't fade and Hughes wrapped him up in a tight squeezing hug.

"So proud of you Roy."

And Roy relaxed and enjoyed the hug for a brief moment before Hughes asked the inevitable question. The ease and comfort came naturally when in his arms.

"So how did you get this promotion? What clinched it for you?" Maes said and fluffed up his buddy's soft and messy hair.

His body reacted, knowing the reason would garner some disapproval from him. He knew Maes felt the change in his body and within a second Hughes released him from the hug to look him in the eye. The bar was busy, servers brushed up against them in an attempt to make their way to tables, and the patrons at the bar were more interested in happy hour than eavesdropping. So he quietly said, "I recruited that Elric kid for the State Alchemist program."

Maes sat down. "You're kidding."

"No. I got my promotion for recruiting a kid into the military. A kid who already lost his Mom, brother and limbs. I gave a ten year old a recruitment speech and he latched onto it because he had nothing else." Roy said and took a drink.

Maes studied Roy body and it spoke volumes. The way his eyes stared straight ahead, the way he immediately punished himself with the burning shot of alcohol down his throat and the way he slumped on the bar stool despite achieving something unthinkable: A full Colonel before thirty and all he needed to do was hand a boy over to the State to use as a weapon if they wanted to. Roy was waiting for it; the disapproval, the disgust. He _wanted_ it. Maes sighed and leaned on the bar, he wasn't going to get it. "If this kid is _that_ good then it's only a matter of time before he was noticed. Not everyone would have brought him under their protective wing."

Roy didn't move, just shifted his eyes to Hughes to see if he was being serious. He was.

"You think I don't know you're a soft-hearted protective fool, Roy Mustang? Sure this Colonel Mustang is a total asshole, manipulating some child genius to get himself promoted, but that lazy bastard doesn't do anything but force his staff to do his paperwork for him while he whores around. Now he's got an errand boy. What a dick."

It didn't make him feel any better about it. Promotions had been earned at the cost of others, not by his own merits. This wasn't how it was supposed to be, but that was reality. That was the military. "I'll need your help. I can't help the boys too much, that kid can't be seen as an asset to me. So...if you can watch out and help him a little, I'd appreciate it."

"Of course." Maes said and smiled. _Soft-hearted idiot._ Suddenly these kids had a income and access to the wealth of knowledge the Central Library had to offer. Suddenly they had Mustang and his team watching them, because he would have to report in to his supervisor and Maes knew they would be out in full force if anyone endangered that child. "But right now we celebrate! My best friend just got promoted! Another step closer to Central! Another step closer to the top."


	11. Rain

For HyuroiWeek 2017: Day 2 – Rain

Warning:NSFW

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 _Hyuori Collection_

Chapter 11

 **Rain**

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Roy was not a cuddler, this was something Maes had always known, and it always amused him that the man who loved dogs so much was so cat-like in nature. Roy adored attention and being pet, but could only tolerate being held for so long. It made post-coital affections difficult because Maes wanted the romance of falling asleep on each other and Roy would roll over and hug his pillow.

It was one thing if he wanted to sleep, but Roy had never been able to do that well. His mind was too active, and Maes knew that he was staring out the window _thinking_ about something _._ It was frustrating and he didn't know if it was because he couldn't turn his brain off or if he wanted to remain distant after sex. So Maes laid on his back, staring at the ceiling as the sweat cooled off his skin and he had to force himself to _not_ roll over and wrap himself around Roy. "One of these days I want you to lay there immobilized and tell me the sex was so good you can't think of anything else."

"I think of nothing else while you're fucking me, I promise you that." Roy listened to the sound of the rain striking the window and watched as the lightning flashed and lit up the night sky. "I wish I could stop thinking, just forget about everything for longer...I can't."

Maes knew how much everything wore him down, he understood how active that mind was inside that adorable little head on the pillow. Work, alchemy, life, the past, the fear...he could let go for a little while but never long. Maes knew how to make him come unglued, how to stop him from thinking...how to tease and please him to the point where he couldn't even form words anymore. However, once the moment was over, he could never hold onto it. Roy would never linger in the moment he would always go back to being in charge. Maybe that was the problem. He could never completely let down his guard for long and that was something that had to change. "Do you trust me?"

"Considering what I just let you do to me..."

"Roy. Shut up and just tell me yes or no."

"Yes."

"Good." Maes said and rolled off the bed, pulled the sheets off his curled up lover and then picked his knife up off the dresser and sliced the sheets.

"I was not expecting that reaction." Roy sat up curiously as Hughes cut his nice sheets into four strips. Expensive sheets.

"Looks like the alchemist doesn't understand every chemical reaction there is after all." Maes said and crawled onto the bed to straddle Roy. "Ever been tied up?"

"I don't want..."

Maes kissed him. "I want you to trust me completely and surrender yourself entirely to making love to me. Not just some quick tryst to get yourself off and go back to hugging your pillow, I want you to let everything outside of us go. Forget it all. You need to stop thinking about everything for more than just a goddamned hour. This is the only way I can think of to make this happen."

Roy felt the sheet being wrapped around his wrist and his heart began to race. The loss of control scared him at the same time that Hughes doing it to him turned him on. It was an internal battle he wasn't sure how to categorize. "I can't do this."

"You have to learn to do something or this stress if going to kill you." Maes tied the sheet around Roy's other wrist, the idea of having him at his mercy was arousing as hell. Roy was an absolute mess when he could get him past his desire to stop before he lost control and he loved bringing him to that point. "I'm in bed with _you_ , not a superior. You never used to be like this, I want the academy days back when we took every chance to experiment, play and explore each other...now you're so uptight. You put a time limit on how long you're allowing yourself to be human."

"We aren't the same people." Roy said and Maes placed the sheets across his palms as he pulled them up above his head and looked at him as they went taught.

"In this bed, there is you and me and _nothing_ else. I want to see that smirk on your face as realize we have to try something new. That devious smile like you used to get when the girls at your Mom's bar talked about what kinks their customer's had that night. That glint in your eye as you looked over your beer at me and I knew you were already picturing me naked. That feeling I used to get knowing you fucking knew some wild shit from growing up there that you had no problems explaining to me or allowing me to do to you. Wanting you to do to me. How we'd never even make it to back to the barracks before you pinned me against some wall and talked dirty to me about some obscure sex term I had never even heard of. You still give me those looks in the office and then I come here and you are never _here_ anymore. Well you aren't going to have a choice now, because you aren't going anywhere tonight."

Roy was shoved back into the bed as Maes reached out and threw the sheets around the bedpost. He released one so he could tie the other with two hands, giving him the opportunity to protest or untie himself. Instead he stayed put and gave his consent with silence. Hughes knew him well. He could talk himself out of anything and being the one to voice the words of submission would be too much for him right now. Maes was right, life had made him scared to lose control and he feared what the feeling of freedom would be like now.

Maes tied the other sheet around the bedpost when Roy didn't do anything to get away. He laid there and fought internally with himself to accept this and Maes was going to do his best to reward him for it. He ran his hands down Roy's chest, watching the muscles reach to his touch, watching Roy's breath hitch as he ran his fingers over his abs and then down his inner thighs, thumbs purposely brushing his growing arousal and then he gripped his legs tighter and forced them apart. He tied the remaining strips around his ankles and then had to wrap them around the feet of the bed. When he sat back up he could see the body splayed out before him in all it's splendor, a lighting flash lighting it briefly for him to truly see what he had accomplished. He was expecting Roy to demand he let him go at any second, so he slowly crawled up the bed, kissing his way up his legs and then looked up at him and in his most reassuring and calming voice he asked, "You OK?"

It was taking a lot of effort to not panic over the restraints or the feeling of vulnerability. However he could feel Maes's scruff against the inside of his leg and his body reacted to that, knowing what was coming next. He held on to the straps of sheets and took a deep breath, chemicals in his body swirling around with conflicting messages, and accepted that he wanted whatever Maes was planning more than being in charge. Especially if he was planning to give him a blow job, a rarity these days. "Yeah."

"Good." Maes said and grinned. He could tell that Roy was getting edgy, still struggling with this concept, so he made sure he gave him only one thing to think about. He stuck his tongue out and slowly licked up Roy's shaft to the head and then made a few circles around the tip before taking him in his mouth. He felt Roy's whole body react, legs trying to move but held in place and hips pushing down into the mattress. There was no doubt in his mind that the only thing Roy was thinking about was him now.


	12. Can you feel this?

For late Fictober Prompt 1 "Can you feel this?"

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 _Hyuroi Collection_

Chapter 12

 **Can you Feel This?**

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"Maes!"

A hand slipped into his shirt. A warm hand on his cold skin.

"Maes! Talk to me."

Roy. Where did he come from? He wanted to say something, wanted to open his eyes but the comforting embrace of sleep was too much to overcome. And God was he tired. And cold.

"Son of a bitch, don't you die on me."

Over-dramatic as always, Roy. He was getting distant. Bad phone connection? No, Roy didn't answer his phone. No...those hands were his hands on his skin. _Not now Roy, I'm tired._

"I'm sorry. This is going to hurt, and I hope it does. If you can feel this..."

Kinky Roy, he hadn't seen him since the academy. Talk dirty all you want but we both know you're too sensitive a lover. Sorry. Why apologize? When had he ever shown anything but joy at his touch. If I can feel this? It was getting hard to feel. Extremities were numb and cold. Roy's hand was no longer on his chest. Then he felt it, heat...pain. It ripped him from the serene and chilling peace and opened his eyes and throat. He could barely scream, like it was some kind of nightmare where he was paralyzed.

"Maes?"

Roy's hands were on him again, holding him down. Then he smelled it, burning flesh. He looked at Roy, tears streaking down his face. The pain wracked through him, his body unable to move from it but still able to feel each pulse of pain from the wound in his side. It beat life back into him.

The wound.

And it came back to him. That woman in the research room. _Gracia_...in the phone booth.

"Lay still, you have been shot and I can't do anything about that. You've lost a lot of blood. Please, don't die."

Roy sounded desperate. He was crying. He was here...in Central? He wasn't in his office when he called, he got his stupid voicemail. Roy...came to Central and got here in time to save his life. Sirens sounded in the distance and warmth radiated from his now fire-seared wound and warmed his cooling body. Then Roy draped his coat over him like a blanket, like he had done so many times over Roy when he fell asleep at his desk. Then a hand wrapped around his, Roy's gloved hand.

And this was a man who was convinced he wasn't a hero.


	13. Pendulum

Because Yet Another Man's Battlefield is Hyuroi as hell.

* * *

Hyuroi Collection

Chapter 13

Pendulum

* * *

Roy hung his head and sat in a heap on the floor. He was too numb to feel the grains of sand covering every inch of his body but he could feel it with each breath as the layers of fine granules formed a film in his nose. Not enough to restrict his breathing but enough to make every breath uncomfortable. It was inescapable, the sands of Ishval.

He closed his eyes and tried to not cringe when the tent flap opened and light shined onto him. Hughes was back. He was here to deliver orders, to drag him out to work and direct his hand at the sector that was next on the list for destruction. How times had changed. Months ago all he looked forward to was seeing Hughes, now he dreaded his arrival.

It was their relationship, as it had been from the beginning. A pendulum swing of emotion and he doubted it would ever change. He could still remember that first piece of quiche that made him notice the gangly bastard, and the subsequent rage that built every time he saw him. That anger that pushed him to run faster, fight harder and be better. Then, they somehow met in the middle and became allies and momentum swung up to lovers quickly.

He swallowed as he tried to not dwell on that for too long. The pendulum would inevitably swing away and stay away for years after graduation. He was at his worst here, looking into his reflection and seeing a hollow man who stood for nothing: eyes of a killer, spineless dog of the military, _hero of Ishval_. It was at that moment when Hughes came back into his life and he went from being empty inside to filled with _feelings_ and being human again.

Hughes had a purpose and that was to not die. He had plans, he was looking ahead to accomplishing his goals: wife, family, living that Amestrian Dream. Roy felt lost in it all and just let himself be swept out with the tide as Hughes's enthusiasm for the future seemed so definitive. He wanted to drown in it because it seemed so hopeful and good and months later he ruined it with one simple question:

"How can you embrace the woman you love with those hands?"

Then the tide came back in and dumped them both on the sandy shore. Choking and covered in sand. Lungs screaming for air, hands clutching unsteady ground. Hughes's hand at his throat, eyes wild and panicked. He had pulled back the curtain of that dream and realized how desperate Maes was to hold on to it. Why? Because at some point they all realized they were no longer faced with staying _alive_ but _living_ with what they had done and that was terrifying. Unless the sacrifices made had been worth it. For Maes, the blood would wash off temporarily so he could have his family, to protect them and make them safe and loved. He would make it worth it. It had to be worth what they did.

And the pendulum swung once more away from _them_ and towards where they both had to go. For Roy it would be to the top to fix this world and protect those he did love and those he harmed. There would be no separate ways this time, Hughes would drag him along with the momentum of his own happiness and Roy would have to be careful not to drag him down with the weight of his actions. Perhaps, together, the could propel themselves forward away from the rock bottom they experienced here and speed the swing past the worst to come again in the future.

For now, it was time to get to his feet and go back to work.


	14. Always by your side

AN: For HyuroiWeek2017 Day 4: Always by your side. Picked up an old WIP for this, still a WIP, but if I don't put it here I will never get around to completing it. Especially since it's been over a year since I wrote this and my dumb ass is just now posting it because I forgot about it entirely.

* * *

 _Hyuroi Collection_

Chapter 14

 **Always by your side**

* * *

He was still reeling from the news of the Hughes's death and the last thing he was prepared for was a tall man in a suit placing the envelope in his hand. Everything seemed to come to a standstill as the man asked, "Colonel Mustang, did you hear what I said?"

The past few hours had been like living a nightmare. It was an ordinary day at the office until he answered the phone and found out that his best friend and his wife had been killed in a train derailment. He felt his world slow down as the voice on the other end of the line, Hughes's secretary, cried and told him the brief details. Maes and Gracia were going out to lunch, one of the Central's commuter trains hit a car on the tracks and the entire front of the engine caught on fire. The train went into a curve too quickly, jumping the tracks and landing on Smith Street. It was a disaster. So many casualties and the Hughes's were listed amoungst them.

Roy heard Hawkeye's voice beside him as he set down the phone and felt his hand shake. Hughes was dead? He survived a war and his damned job just to die in the street because of a freak accident? She drove him to the station, got them on the first train to Central and drove him to the hospital to see the coroner. He didn't say much and let Hawkeye lead him around. How the hell could he be gone?

"Colonel?"

Roy looked up at the man who was hovering over him, a lawyer. He had been replaying the day in his head again hoping for a different outcome. He sat up and looked at the man and said, "Yes."

"It was my understanding that Lt. Colonel Hughes had spoken with you about this."

Roy looked at the letter in his hand and saw Maes's signature handwriting on it. He opened the letter and ignored the man who was growing more agitated by the second because he was paid by the hour. To hell with him. He opened the letter addressed to him and as he read he heard Maes's voice in his head.

 _Roy, if you're reading this then I'm dead and you forgot about the many times we talked about this. In the event that something happened to me and Gracia, you agreed to take care of Elicia. Remember, now? Good. So I need you to get past whatever happened to me because my daughter needs you._

 _I know this isn't going to be easy, but you are going to have to be the Dad I can't be now. I know you're going to say that you're the worst person for this job and you can't take care of yourself more or less a kid. You're better than you give yourself credit for. Elicia is a pretty forgiving kid too. God I love her...please please don't let her live a day without knowing she's loved. You were there Roy, you were that kid who had to adapt to a Foster Mom and learn to live without your parents. I don't know how you did it and I can't give you any advice, but I believe in you. So please, just help her through this._

 _I hope you never read this, but I'd be a fool to never prepare for this scenario. Take care of each other. Oh...and get a WIFE! ~Maes_

The hand-writing got shaky and there were blotched indicating tears had fallen when he wrote this. So Elicia loses her parents and then gets stuck with him? That wasn't equivalent exchange. "Yes."

The lawyer nodded and tucked his briefcase under his arm. "The little girl is at home with a Major Armstrong? I assume the military will be taking care of the funeral, so there won't be anything I need from you in that regards, however I do have a lot of paperwork for you to sign come tomorrow. You can come by my office?"

"Yes." Roy said and the man gave him a nod and handed him a business card. Then he was gone, down the busy hallway of the hospital basement that was now packed with gurneys, body bags and sobbing families. He looked up at Hawkeye who had stood by his side the entire time and she rested her hand on his shoulder again.

"Dr. Knox..." Riza took a deep breath. "He says that Armstrong already identified the bodies and highly suggest you not torture yourself by going in there."

Roy glanced up at her, "No. I...need to. I've seen worse...I've done worse."

Riza looked away as he pushed past the swinging doors into the morgue. One more thing to try to suffocate him in his dreams, the man knew how to hurt himself. She followed him, knowing it would be up to her to drag him out of there when he could endure no more.

* * *

"This isn't the Hughes's house." Roy said flatly from the passenger seat as he realized the car had stopped.

"I know." Riza looked over at his red eyes and reached over to hold the hand he rested on the seat. "You should stop and see your Mom while you are in town."

Roy shook his head. "Riza, nothing is going to make me a suitable parent, not even a pep talk from my foster mother about how I came into her life."

"Hughes would have never asked you if he didn't believe you were capable." She said softly.

He nodded and opened the door and slipped off the seat to stand on the sidewalk. He looked up at his childhood home as the "Christmas's Bar" sign swung lightly in the breeze. He could still remember being about Elicia's age when he got out of the car after his parent's funeral and looked up at the exact same sign and wondered why he was being punished like this. He had been scared of his Aunt Chris at first, she was a bold and intimidating woman, and he just followed her around like a lost puppy. He had no home or parents to go to, he had no other choice. He took a deep breath and walked to the door and opened it, the bell rang over his head and reminded him that this would always be home for him.

Chris Mustang looked up from the bar and raised an eyebrow when she saw her foster son. Something was wrong, it was written all over his face. "What's wrong, Roy-Boy?"

He paused in the doorway and looked at her. The bar was empty, she wasn't open for business yet. He let the door swing closed as he walked over to the bar and slumped onto a stool. He wanted to cry. Someone he choked out, "Maes was killed in that train accident..."

She reached over and put her hand on his cheek. His eyes were red. He looked lost. "I'm sorry kid."

"He...asked me to take care of his daughter." Roy let out a choked sob and put his fist in his mouth to avoid breaking down and crying. Maes asked him to look after his daughter, the center of his universe.

"Then where is she?" Chris said and his watery eyes lifted to her and she ruffled his hair. "What? At least you're a respectable man with means to take care of a kid. I'm proud of how you turned out Roy Boy, and nobody has to tell me I wasn't the ideal candidate to raise a kid. You know how scared and lost that poor girl is right now, so get your ass over there and don't let her leave your side."

"Mom..."

"Go." She said and smacked his cheek. "I'll make dinner."

Roy didn't move until she shoved him off the bar stool and gave him an authoritative point to the door. He slowly moved away and shuffled to the door. When he hesitated opening it he heard her voice, much softer than before.

"She needs your confidence and strength even if you have none. Just take her under your wing like you naturally do to everyone you meet."

* * *

Edward felt the air sucked out of his lungs when Maria Ross told him that the Hughes' were killed in the accident that leveled half of Smith Street. When they had come in on the train, they saw the damage and Al had joked about it looking like Ed had been here already...now..."Oh my God."

Al could only gasp in horror at the news. He wished he had some other release for the horrible emotions, but without a real body his soul was forced to just bear it all on it's own. "NO!"

Maria looked away, their voices tore open the wound that she thought was starting to heal. The loss of Hughes was a cloud that hung over them all. "It was a horrible accident, a lot of people lost their lives."

"What about Elicia?" Al asked and saw his brother stiffen. Please God, please don't take another little girl from this world.

"She's...with Colonel Mustang." Maria watched the sorrow turn into shock on Ed's face. "In the event that something happened to him and his wife, Lt. Colonel Hughes asked the Colonel to look after his daughter. Elicia is in East City with him."

"Like...living with him?" Ed said and tried to get his mind around Mustang being a responsible adult in charge of a sweet little girl. The first image that came to his mind was of the young Lt. Colonel who grabbed him by his collar and lifted him out of his wheelchair by his throat. "Oh my GOD!"

Al cringed. The Colonel...was taking care of Elicia? "We've been in his apartment! He has food in his fridge that is older than us and I'm pretty sure there is something living in his couch!"

"Has nobody seen how he treats me!?" Ed screamed. "You let him take her home with him!?"

"Boys." Maria said as they both bolted down the hallway and disappeared down the hall. She sighed. "Well I guess two more protective Uncles won't hurt anything."

* * *

"Are these pictures?" Elicia asked as she almost fell into the box after the album that was just placed in there.

Roy sat on the floor and put a few books on his lap, pausing his packing for a moment. He couldn't believe all the crap he had accumulated over the years of living in this place. It was essential to move though, for both their sakes. She needed her own room and he needed to leave his bachelor lifestyle behind for good. "Just of me as a kid. Nothing exciting."

"I want to see!" She said and tried to pull the album out and was grateful when his hand helped lift the book out for her.

He set aside the books and scooted over on the carpet to sit next to her and look at the dusty album. A month of having her in his care had allowed him to finally stop acting so awkward around her. Granted he was sure he was being too honest when she asked questions, but he was just going to blame that on being an alchemist and not a shitty adult.

"They're in black and white." She said and looked up at her Uncle Roy who still had the bow in his hair from earlier when she brushed it for him. "Did you not have color when you were little?"

"No, color film was a little more expensive back then. My Mom just had this old camera..."

"So was everything in back and white?" She asked. "Like did you _see_ in black and white? Did you live without color?"

He was slowly acclimating to the mindset of a child and learning to be less offended by the straight forward innocent questions she asked. "No. I saw in color. It's just that the film was...never mind. That's a picture of when my Mom bought me my first alchemy book. And that is the squirrel I tried to tame that ended up trashing the supply closet and running through the duct work during business hours. "

Elicia smiled as she flipped to the next page. "You were so cute!"

He looked at the picture of him wearing an apron trying to make biscuits. "I learned an important lesson that day."

"What was that?" She asked.

"There is a huge difference between a teaspoon and a tablespoon when speaking in terms of salt." He sighed. "Those biscuits were awful. They're probably still up on the roof of the bar. I tried feeding them to the pigeons and they got a little suspicious of me after that."

"You mean like when you try feeding Hayate?" She asked.

"Yeah." Roy reached over for the books and looked at the alchemy book that was his first book. So, should he see if she wanted to learn this too? He had no idea what Maes would have wanted.

"It's Daddy!" Elicia squealed.

Roy froze and looked down at the album. He had put away the picture he usually kept on his desk from graduation, not wanting to make things harder on them both. However he forgot that nearly half his album was stuffed full of academy pictures thanks to Maes being...well...Maes. He had sent those all home to his Mom and she had placed them in the album.

"Uncle Roy?" Elicia said and touched the picture. "Why can't you bring him and Mommy back? With alchemy?"

Roy could feel his gut churning and the bile beginning to rise from his stomach. Thankfully there was a loud knock on the door that could only be one obnoxious person. He was never so happy to hear Fullmetal's knock before in his life. "Hey, that's Ed."

"How do you know?" Elicia said and turned as she heard the banging again.

"I just know." Roy said as she ran over to the door and he threw the books in the box. He got up and walked over to open the door and saw from Elicia's fading smile that she was hoping he was wrong. She was hoping her Dad would be there to pick her up and tell her it was all a mistake, that this nightmare wasn't real and he was here to save her. Instead he looked at Ed who must have seen the same thing he did, and the boy was immediately mellowed out. His confidence was already shaken before he was reminded of just how bad he was with kids. "Hey Fullmetal, are you here to help me pack?"

* * *

"We're home!" Elicia squealed and opened the car door before the car could come to a stop. Roy slammed on the brakes and the Elrics slammed into the front seat as Elicia jumped out of the car. Before Roy could put the car in park, the boys were scrambling over each other to get out of the back seat and race after the little girl. All three of them made it to the front lawn just in time to see Elicia pounding her little fists on the front door, screaming for her parents. Ed and Al knew the feeling, the knew exactly what it was like coming _home_ and finding out it could never be _home_ again. They had run home after the funeral only to find an empty house, ran home thinking if they could just get away from the nightmare that they could go back to the way things were.

Ed was the first to go over to Elicia and take her hands in his own. "They're not here."

"You don't know that!" Elicia screamed. "I want my Mommy and Daddy! They came home while I was away, I know it."

Roy tossed the house keys to Al, his feet still frozen in place. He thought they were making progress, but that was all a lie he told himself to make this situation more comfortable. Elicia would never be over their loss, and it would take years before she stopped looking at the door expecting her parents to come home. He remember doing that, a memory long repressed, and knew he wasn't the one to help her now. Ed and Al's could still relate, they still picked at the scabs of their loss. "I'll get her bags."

Al walked up the stairs and onto the front porch and put the keys in the door, then swung it open for Elicia to run into. Ed kept his eyes down and followed her, turning on lights as they went. Al was glad for once that he wasn't in a real body, he didn't want to smell that stagnant air or that faint hint of familiar people's smell. The silence in a home that had once been filled with warmth and happiness was enough.

Ed wasn't as lucky. Elicia could be heard running from room to room, echos of "Mommy?" "Daddy!" and it was enough to break his heart, but seeing the Hughes home frozen in time was something he wasn't prepared for. Armstrong had gone through and thrown away the perishables, secured the valuables and locked the house up after the funeral. It wasn't until matters were settled that the lawyer turned over the keys to Mustang, the Hughes' left everything to Elicia and Mustang was her guardian until she was old enough to own it herself. Mustang thought it would be better for Elicia to live in her home, but Ed wasn't so sure about that now. It wasn't an empty house like they came home to as kids, Hughes was much more of a presence and that was evident now.

Photos were on every wall. Maes and Gracia were smiling at them from behind the glass of those frames, smiling as they lived and loved life...a life that was now lost. Al tried to not look as he walked to the stairs, but it was impossible. "What do we do? We can't take these pictures down?"

"At least..." Ed whispered. "I never knew how fortunate we were to have so few pictures of Mom."

"Yeah." Al agreed. He walked up the stairs to Elicia's room and found her in her bed, clutching a stuffed animal. He walked over and sat down beside her and to his surprise she started crying into his arm. "It's going to be hard for a while."

"Why can't you bring them back!?" Elicia squealed. "I want my Mommy and Daddy back."

"It won't work." Al said softly. "It never does."

"But you and brother Ed..and Uncle Roy are the best." Elicia screamed. "Bring back my Mommy and Daddy."

* * *

Roy settled in to his new job in Central easier than he settled into his new home. Elicia was better off somewhere familiar instead of his cramped apartment and returning home reassured her quite a bit. It was hard, feeling like someone was always watching him, knowing Maes was probably disappointing him. Roy put his hands on the bathroom vanity and looked at himself in the mirror, hardly the image of a good foster parent. He had no idea how his own mother hand managed to do this. "Hughes, I don't know how to give her the life you wanted. I don't know how to be you."

He got in the shower and took his time. This was the only time he had to himself as Elicia glued herself to him during their time together, fearing he would disappear forever and leave her alone as well. He called her from work to reassure her as much as possible. They played when he got home. He would read her a bedtime story and put her to sleep, then take a shower and discover she had relocated to his bed. This was his only peaceful time. All ten minutes of it.

When he got out of the shower he toweled off and looked at the mirror, ready to use his towel to wipe away the condensation on the glass. However he paused as he stared at the steamed up mirror, words traced out in it. "Still by your side Roy-Boy"

There were only three people in this world who knew about that nickname. His mother and Riza would never break into his bathroom to write spooky shit in the mirror, they'd never push his buttons like that. His best friend would. His asshole best friend would break into his apartment and write dumb fucking messages on his mirror to find when he was recovering from a hangover. But Maes was dead, that was a fact.

Then, in front of his eyes, he saw new letters emerge. One by one: _USO-800._ Maes's call number that only he and Central Command knew. This couldn't be real.

* * *

Ed and Al came over for dinner, something they were now accustomed to doing for Elicia's sake. Roy enjoyed cooking and Elicia enjoyed company, they enjoyed trying to make things normal for her. It worked out well. This evening something seemed wrong and Ed couldn't quite put his finger on it. He wondered if Roy was going to give up on it all, he wanted to give him the benefit of the doubt, but he was biased when it came to failed father figures. Al was hopeful, but Ed saw the uncertainty and it reminded him of the way Hohenheim used to look at them before he left.

After they put Elicia to bed and told her a bedtime story, they came out to say goodnight to Roy as he did the dishes. "Is Elicia asleep?"

Ed glared at his back as he put some more dishes in the drying rack. _He knew it._ "Yeah."

Al gave his brother a questioning glance. Why did he sound so hostile? "Yes, she tried to fight it but we promised to come back tomorrow so she could hear the rest of the story."

Roy toweled off his hands and turned around. "I have a theory to run past you two."

 _Theory._ Ed crossed his arms and leaned against the wall. _Theory that he wasn't cut out for this? That he wasn't going to be able to be a good Father for this little girl so it was best to just not try?_

"As alchemists, we can see energy." Roy began., his eyes not lifting from the towel as he rubbed his hands off despite them already being adequately dry. "I'm not alone in this?"

"No." Al responded.

"A soul, is theorized as being an energy source." Roy began and finally threw the towel onto the counter. He looked up and he saw Hughes standing beside Ed on the wall. Hughes, a glowing figure of energy that nobody else could see. He was losing it and he had nobody else he could ask. These two were the only people in existence who could understand his reasoning or his insanity. They would also tell him if Elicia was no longer safe in his care because of these hallucinations and that was what he needed. Truth. "We, as alchemists, should be able to see it as we do other energy."

Ed wasn't expecting that. He let his anger abate and stepped away from the wall. "What...are you asking?"

"Can you see Hughes?" Roy asked and looked directly at his best friend. "There, by the chalkboard on the wall?"

Both boys turned towards the chalkboard without hesitation and saw nothing. Then something happened. On the chalkboard was a patch of scribbled chalk, a block of color, and then smudges in it appeared. Something was wiping away the chalk. Al was the first to ask, "How are you doing that? I didn't see you clap."

"I'm not doing that." Roy said. "You see it too, right?"

Ed walked closer, eyes watching intently as every stroke revealed a message. It was a date. His birthday. Elicia's birthday. "Colonel, if this is some kind of joke I will kick your ass all the way back to East City."

"If you concentrate to the left of the chalkboard, to the left of you...can you see him?" Roy asked and stepped closer to the table. He needed confirmation, he needed to know he wasn't losing it. He sounded desperate. "Concentrate. Focus on the energy..."

Ed did as asked and did see a faint outline of something.

"I see." Al said and gasped softly. "He's a soul without a body."

Silence.

Al finally asked, "How did you do it Colonel?"

"I didn't do anything." Roy said and Hughes then wrote on the board again.

 _'Alchemy doesn't do everything.'_

Ed leaned against the kitchen table. He looked at Mustang who's face betrayed his relief and he knew right then and there this was the truth. He had accepted so many other things so readily, why not this? He focused harder and saw the shadowy face of a man they had come to love as part of their family. He was quick to react and said, "But...maybe we can use alchemy to attach your soul to a body."

 _'No'_

"I already asked." Roy said and sat down at the table. "Hughes wishes to remain a ghost."

Al knew from the sound of his voice that Mustang would have paid the toll to soul bind Hughes to something so he could still live. He also knew that he would still do it if a solution presented itself. "I don't understand how this is happening? How is Hughes able to be here?"

"I don't know anything about ghosts." Roy said and leaned back in the chair. "I always thought they were bullshit easily explained by the human psyche stretching for a reason to simple physical reactions. "

 _'I like proving you wrong'_

"Shut up Hughes."

Ed sat down and felt the air disturbance next to him and his skin reacted to it with goosebumps and raised hairs. "So what do you want us to do? Do you want us to find a way to put him in a body again?"

"I want..." Roy paused. " _We_ want you to help Elicia learn alchemy so she can see him. I think there is something in the way we, as alchemists, see the world that enables us to focus on this energy and mentally process it."

"Does she know?" Al asked.

Roy looked at Hughes and crossed his arms. "Well _someone_ has been writing her notes on the chalkboard in her room. Which makes for some awkward conversations with the people at daycare."

 _'Not sorry'_

"We can do that." Al assured him. "We can definitely do that."

Roy looked over as Hughes gave a thumbs up and couldn't help but wonder what else they could do. It was a conversation for the office however, somewhere Hughes couldn't hear him asking Ed about how he bound Al's soul to his armor in excruciating detail.

 _'Start tomorrow.'_

"They do work for me remember?" Roy said knowing this was a move meant to block him from asking those questions of Ed. Knowing Hughes would be alone with the boys and tell them not to allow their knowledge, their mistakes, from being shared.

 _'Too bad'_

Roy stood up and sighed. "Well then you two might as well spend the night. I'm going to bed, some of us actually have to work in the morning."

"I don't sleep." Al reminded them and went over to add more chalk to the board. "I finally have someone I can talk to."

"I'll stay up with you." Ed said and sat down.

"Goodnight then." Roy said and relaxed a little. It gave him time to think to himself without Hughes interrupting.

* * *

To be continued...


End file.
